This chapter was requested by a Guest, who asked me to write for a certain prompt in which Natsu comes out as a trans woman to Gray. Believe it or not, I was really excited when I got this request and started writing right away because even though I'm not trans, I have friends who are and I'm the B in LGBT. It's such a sweet thing to write about, and I really looked forward to posting this. Much love, hope you enjoy this!!!

QUICK NOTE: IF YOURE TRANSPHOBIC, GET THE FUCK OUT AND DON'T BOTHER ANYONE AS YOU LEAVE. I DON'T WANNA SEE ANY NASTY COMMENTS ABOUT HOW THIS CHAPTER IS "GROSS" OR WHATEVER THE CASE MAY BE. YOU MEAN TO TELL ME THAT YOU'RE READING A ONE SHOTS BOOK FOR A GAY SHIP AND YOU CAN'T HANDLE TRANSGENDERS? NOPE, I DON'T THINK SO!!!

(I apologize for how explosive and rude that sounded, but because I have a family member and a few friends who are trans, I really have absolutely no tolerance whatsoever for transphobic people. They really irk me.)

-

"You look beautiful."

-

Natsu POV

I was so scared because I knew I had to tell him.

It was just one of those things you can't hide from your best friend because they will find out soon we rather than later, and then they'll be mad at you for trying to hide it in the first place.

But I was really absolutely terrified. I didn't want him to think of me any differently. I didn't want him to either hate me or start slowly distancing himself from me because the change made him uncomfortable. I didn't know how he would take it, and that frightened me to the point where I couldn't breathe.

The world is cruel, but I just could not believe that it would be so cruel as to take Gray from me.

Gray, my best friend who had always been there for me through every up and down. He stayed with me and lent me his shoulder to cry on as I admitted to being gay. He laughed with me when I got a perfect score on the final exam, despite having convinced myself I was gonna fail. He was just one of those great people that I absolutely needed to keep in my life. He was essential to my survival.

But now that I had graduated high school and started thinking about college, I had noticed something was a little bit... Off.

I started cringing or even flinching when someone called me "he/him/his" and even sometimes "bro" like guys are prone to call everyone around them. I started disliking the way I wore my vest. I usually had it completely open at the front to show off my sculpted abs that I had spent years doing crunches to gain. But I was suddenly extremely uncomfortable while wearing it like that. And I started gravitating towards more feminine clothes. I also developed an extreme hatred for my own name. I always thought "Natasha" sounded much better. But of course, that was a girl's name.

...and then it hit me.

I was trans.

Ever since figuring that out, it became shockingly obvious how uncomfortable I was in my own body. I hated that I was more muscular and less feminine. I kept thinking about how I'd rather be a girl. I just wanted to be happy, rather than constantly cringing whenever someone used the "wrong" pronouns.

And I think Gray started noticing right away. In fact, I knew he noticed, because he started asking if I was okay a lot more often than usual. It was really sweet how concerned he was, and that's why I knew I had to just gather up my courage and tell him what was going on. But it made me so nervous, thinking about losing him as a friend because I was falling apart inside.

I didn't ask for these feelings. I didn't ask to start wanting to be a girl. I didn't ask to be so uncomfortable in my own skin that I can barely go out in public without wanting to claw it off.

And that's what I kept telling myself, no matter what. I didn't want to feel this way. But the more I tried to ignore my urges, the stronger they became. Finally I gave up and decided now was the best time to tell Gray what was going on. I doubted he could help me, but at least he'd be aware so he could try.

But what would helping look like? I wasn't sure. So I figured I'd just tell him and see how well he managed to go with it. I felt like his acceptance would be all the help I needed from him. And that's why I knew I had to tell him and see just how good a friend he was to me. A good friend would continue to love and accept you even if you were transgender. A bad friend would give up on you and walk out on you just because seeing you as the opposite gender makes them "uncomfortable".

This was one of the best ways to find out if Gray was really my friend. I didn't doubt it, but I had been unsure of a lot of things lately, so perhaps it was time to put not just my identity but my friendship with him to the test.

Besides, seeing as I was gay, I had always thought Gray was kinda cute. But he was straight. So maybe being a trans woman would improve my chances of being with him. But that's not why I was doing it.

Finally, the right day came. I asked Gray to meet me in the park on a crisp autumn day, and he agreed without hesitation. He also asked if everything was okay like he always did, and this time, I told him, "Not yet... But they will be."

And so, I went home and got ready to meet up with him. What would be the best way to tell him what was going on without telling him? I felt like just coming right out and saying "I'm trans" would be a little too awkward, so I figured I should find a way to show him, if that makes sense, while subtly hinting toward the truth of the matter.

So I wore a dress for the first time. It was a soft pink color, like my hair, and the skirt went down to my knees. I liked the way I looked while wearing it. It wasn't like my other clothes. It felt right. I had bought the dress awhile ago as a gift for my ex girlfriend Lucy while we were still dating. But she dumped me the day before I could give it to her, so I ended up keeping it. It would've been too big for her anyway, I thought to myself with a little smirk.

And then I needed to decide what to do with my hair. I poked the wild pinkish strands with one finger as I intensely stared myself down in a mirror. I wished they were longer, but there was nothing I could do about it. Last I checked, people couldn't ninja-grow long hair in a day.

I sighed, frustrated with my own appearance. "I have to grow this mess out." I muttered, running my fingers through my hair.

So instead I settled with these hair extensions Lucy had given me for Christmas as part of an inside joke. They matched my hair, and made it look ten times longer. The extensions made my hair stream down to my shoulder blades. I stared at my reflection for a moment longer before finally smiling. I looked good, and exactly how I wanted to look.

Finally. I get to be Natasha. I'm leaving Natsu in the closet. I thought, as I put on my shoes and skipped out of my room, satisfied.

My phone vibrated on the table, making a soft buzzing sound. I walked over and took a quick glance at the screen. It was from Gray.

"Oi, hey idiot. I'm running late. I'll meet you there maybe fifteen minutes late. If it's too cold, just text me and go home. I don't want you catching pneumonia lol."

I wanted to hug my phone like an excited schoolgirl who's just been texted by her crush. Gray was so sweet and worrysome. Honestly, maybe I did have a chance with him. But I didn't want to say anything about that today, because he'd already be overwhelmed enough with the shocking news that Natsu was dead and Natasha had taken his place.

Natasha is literally everything I want to be. Strong, confident, and feminine.

With that comforting and thoroughly empowering thought in mind, I strode out the door, intending to walk to the park. I followed through with that plan quite nicely, but then my confidence flopped because people kept giving me weird looks and staring, like I was some freak of nature.

Maybe I don't look as good as I thought...

Oh god. What if I didn't actually want Gray to see me like this? Why couldn't I have gone the simple way and just verbally told him what was going on? I mentally kicked myself for being so damn stupid, but it was too late to turn back now, so I pressed on and tried my hardest to ignore the strange looks people gave me as I passed by on the streets.

The park wasn't busy or crowded at all, much to my great relief. I was one of the only people there, and everyone else was too far away to realize I wasn't actually biologically a woman.

Fuck. I look fucking ridiculous. I sat down on a bench under a Sakura blossom tree to wait, wringing my hands anxiously. What will he think? How will he react to seeing me like this? Fuck, fuck, fuck... I kept inwardly swearing because it honestly helped alleviate some of the stress pushing down on me and making me feel like I had a thousand heavy weights chained to my shoulders.

After what felt like an eternity, my phone went off. I grabbed it in a hurry, secretly hoping Gray had decided to cancel.

"I'm here, where are you?" the text stared back at me almost accusingly and I almost hurled my phone into the tree behind me. That's how nervous I was. I glared at it for a moment before hesitantly typing out a response.

"On the bench under the Sakura tree. You might not recognize me, just so you know..."

I hesitated again before sending it. He read it only a moment later, and the "typing" icon appeared below my text for an even longer moment. To me, it felt like an eternity. To those of you who have had tense conversations over text, you know how this feels, when you send something and the other person starts typing and you wish they could just go about ten miles per hour faster...

Finally, a new message from him appeared.

"Okay..? I'm on my way there now. Wdym I won't recognize you? Did Gajeel give you a black eye again? If so, then don't worry, it's nothing I'm not used to lol."

I sighed and pressed one hand to my forehead before responding. "Heh, no. But that's a good guess."

He read it, but didn't reply, which kinda irked me for some reason. I guess he decided to shut up and see for himself what was going on. Smart boy, I thought.

After a few moments of keeping my head on a swivel, surveying the park around me and warily scanning the area for any sign of pale skin and raven hair, I saw him. He was wearing a gray hoodie with a blue Fairy Tail logo on the front, a black beanie that blended in with his soft hair perched on his head. He had his hands in the front pocket of his hoodie, and he was glancing around with a little frown on his face. I'm pretty sure he didn't realize that I was me until I said something.

I rolled my eyes and called out, "Hey, dummy, I'm over here."

Finally, he looked at me square in the eye, and did a double-take. "Natsu? Um..." he hurried over and paused before sitting down beside me. "Uh, hey, what's up?" he was trying so hard to be casual, and I found that adorable.

"Heh... Nothing much, you?" I replied, clasping my hands in my lap so I didn't keep fidgeting.

"N-Nothing." now it was his turn to get all nervous. "Um... Why are you dressed like that, if you don't mind my asking?"

"That's why I wanted to meet up with you today." I explained, unable to stop my voice from shaking. Now was the moment of truth. "This is how I want to look. Like, from now on." I knew I was being too vague the second I saw how confused he became.

"Uh, okay? I'm not really sure what you're trying to tell me, but... I mean... Okay..." he was stuttering like crazy now, and found something of vast interest to stare at on the ground, rocking back and forth nervously. "Are you okay, Natsu?"

"Call me Natasha." I told him.

And that's when I saw realization dawn in his gorgeous midnight blue eyes.

Gray blanched, and his eyes went wide. "Oh!" he exclaimed, as if the entire universe suddenly mad sense to him. "Uh, okay, cool. That explains a lot. Um, like the way you've been acting recently. Very strange. But it all makes sense now, haha!" he seemed to be laughing nervously, a natural response to being told your best friend is transgender.

"I-I hope you don't m-mind, and I hope y-you don't feel u-uncomfortable or anything..." I began to mumble, and once I started it was impossible to stop. "B-Because I worry that i-if the way I l-look and dress makes you uncomfortable, y-you won't wanna be friends with me anymore b-but you're also the o-only person I know I have a s-small chance of being a-accepted by..." I was babbling now, going on about a topic I wasn't even sure of anymore.

Gray just waited for me to finish, listening with a patient smile like he always did, as I went on and on and... Wait.

Gray was smiling.

That made me shut up for sure. I shot him a suspicious glare. "What's with the goofy grin?" I demanded, my confusion and anxiety making me sound a lot harsher than I meant to.

"Oh, nothing. I'm waiting for you to finish so I can tell you that you don't have to worry at all." he shook his head with a strange glimmer in his eyes I had never seen before. "You look beautiful, Natasha. And I'd never feel uncomfortable around you ever." he told me.

My mouth dropped open in shock. Not only had he used my new name correctly, but he had called me... Beautiful? No. This couldn't be happening. Never in a thousand years had I imagined this would go so well.

Unable to stop myself, I threw my arms around him and pulled him into a hug, burying my face in his warm shoulder. "Thanks, Gray. You have no idea how much that meant to me."

"Anytime, idiot."

The end.

Damn that was cute. I'm sorry for being so vague with some details, I'm really busy and I have a lot on my mind right now. I hope I didn't disappoint too terribly, and I hope you stick around for the next chapter. Love y'all! Thanks for the request!

-UltimatexAdmin